23 Things I’ve Learned by 23

I turn 23 next month. This post may be slightly early, but the thoughts came to me today. I like reading other people’s annual reflections and decided to bring together some of my own, in addition to this Letter to my Teenage Self. In no particular order, here are 23 things I’ve learned so far:

13) You don’t have to keep up with all of the news. Decide what you most want to be informed about and follow that. Reading clickbait articles about carcinogens or superfoods will never improve your day.

14) Try not to compare your circumstances to other people’s. I like to take Amy Poehler’s ‘good for her, not for me’ approach, especially when I see three engagement announcements on Facebook in one day.

15) Eating fruit and vegetables is good for you. Eating only fruit and vegetables isn’t.

17) Intersectionality should be central to feminism. We need to recognise privilege relating to gender, race, sexuality, disability and class because straight, white, able-bodied, wealthy men are not in the majority. To promote equality in media narratives and policy, we can listen to the stories of people without these privileges and work together to advocate for better rights – even if that sometimes means signing a petition online and forgetting about it a few weeks later. Do what you can.

18) Keeping journals of ideas, thoughts and reflections can be cathartic and enjoyable. As Austin Kleon advises, ‘keep them, pull them out in ten years, and you won’t believe how far you’ve come’.

19) ‘Self-help’, ‘self-care’, ‘personal development’ and ‘mindfulness’ aren’t jargon phrases. Books, talks, training and conversations around these topics can be so useful.